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I don't ride in the rain for safety reasons. Do you know how many dumb**** hicks drive around with bad windshield wipers? There's no such thing as a level playing field when you have to share the road with cars anyway so why give them an even better edge?

skydive, you seem to think lots of people are "effing idots". If you're in the middle of nowhere and a storm comes up, what should you do, hide under a tree? In our area of the country, thunderstorms are almost a daily occurance, and can come up quickly and without warning. So yeah, I ride in the rain lots. Snow is even better.

I ride in the rain. I rather enjoy it. In fact I'm going to get to ride in the rain in about 30 minutes.

Synthetic fabrics are the way to go, I agree. I also wear clear "sports glasses" to keep the rain out of my eyes.

Only time I ever stopped is when pea-sized hail started falling on me. I was more concerned about my cyclocomputer getting broken so I hid in a stand of pine trees until the hail stopped. Then I kept riding in the rain. I'm not that concerned about lightning. Where I ride is generally surrounded by trees.

skydive, you seem to think lots of people are "effing idots". If you're in the middle of nowhere and a storm comes up, what should you do, hide under a tree? In our area of the country, thunderstorms are almost a daily occurance, and can come up quickly and without warning. So yeah, I ride in the rain lots. Snow is even better.

Well pal, after dealing with thunderstorms for the 25 years I was a professional pilot, I know a bit about them. They are killers. I can recall a trip I was flying with the last leg being Tampa to Orlando - Boeing 727. I was taxiing out for takeoff and Tampa tower cleared me to go. My radar indicated numerous heavy cells not only in the area, but on the perimeter of the field. I declined takeoff, and waited for a solid hour prior to taking off for a 20 minute flight. Meanwhile a few (YES, TOTALLY EFFING IDIOT COWBOYS), accepted takeoff. To me, passengers were like eggs, and my job was not to break any of them. I discovered early on, that if I took care of myself, their safety followed mine.

Back to the subject. If you get caught in a thunderstorm, and do anything but seek cover, and/or call for a ride home, you are a effing idiot! If you are in the "middle of nowhere," I guess you have a problem which probably could have been handled by being more attuned to the weather. Yes, here in Florida, we have afternoon thunderstorms virtually every day - that is why I ride in the morning, and even then, I carefully check the weather prior to leaving the house.

Oh, and yes, I have been around long enough that I do in fact think a lot of people are effing idiots!!

I ride in the rain. I rather enjoy it. In fact I'm going to get to ride in the rain in about 30 minutes.

Synthetic fabrics are the way to go, I agree. I also wear clear "sports glasses" to keep the rain out of my eyes.

Only time I ever stopped is when pea-sized hail started falling on me. I was more concerned about my cyclocomputer getting broken so I hid in a stand of pine trees until the hail stopped. Then I kept riding in the rain. I'm not that concerned about lightning. Where I ride is generally surrounded by trees.

ROTFLMFAO!!!!

So you think the trees protect you from lightning? I have some really bad news for you: Being under a tree is one of the worse places you can be during lightning. Read the following, and perhaps save your life:

When thunderstorms approach there are some steps you should take to lower your chance of becoming a lightning strike statistic. These safety procedures are suggested by the National Weather Service:
When a thunderstorm threatens, get inside a home or large building, or inside an all-metal (not convertible) vehicle
Inside a home , avoid using the telephone, except for emergencies
If outside, with no time to reach a safe building or an automobile, follow these rules
Do not stand underneath a natural lighting rod such as a tall, isolated tree
Avoid projecting above the surrounding landscape as you would do if you were standing on a hilltop, in an open field, on the beach, or fishing from a small boat
Get out of and away from open water
Get away from tractors and other metal farm equipment
Get off of and away from motorcycles, scooters, golf carts and bicycles. Put down golf clubs.
Stay away from wire fences, clotheslines, metal pipes, rails and other metallic paths which could carry lightning to you from some distance away.
Avoid standing in small isolated sheds or other small structures in open areas.
In a forest, seek shelter in a low area under a thick growth of small trees. In open areas, go to a low place such as a ravine or a valley. Be alert for flash floods.
If you're hopelessly isolated in a level field of prairie and you feel your hair stand on end - indicating that lightning is about to strike - drop to your knees and bend forward putting your hands on your knees. Do not lie flat on the ground.

I commute by bike, so I do ride in the rain. I will not ride if there is fair amount of lightning. If I am at work I will wait for the worse of the storm to pass or drive to work in the morning if there is lightning.

Luckily, we only get 30 inches of rain a year, so I seldom have trouble with lightning from thunderstorms during my commutes. In fact, I have only driven to work once this year.

skydive, a giant metal hull full of jet fuel in the middle of a flat empty field (or in the sky just above it) is a much different story than a person on a bike with minimal ground contact, surronded by hills, tall trees and buildings. Mountain climbers/hikers/cyclists on exposed peaks or unforested hilltops should be careful of lightning. People should vacate pools when there's lightning nearby. I don't think the very remote threat of lightning strike should keep me from biking home every afternoon all summer. Lightning can stike several miles away from a storm, from storms that cannot be heard or seen. And storms can pop up from nowhere in a matter of minutes. Some of us have the luxury of being able to ride only when they want to. Others take the (very small) risk and ride whenever we can. Taking a calculated risk does not make me an effing idoit, as spending half a year's salary on fragile racing bikes doesn not make you one.

Oh, and yes, I have been around long enough that I do in fact think a lot of people are effing idiots!!

I don't just think they are ... I KNOW they are! Do a few years worth of computer desktop support and it all becomes clear. Most poeple in fact have no logic to them whatsoever. It amazes me we've survived as a species.

Gee, I think it's time to exit this thread - the statements get brighter as they go along. One of my favs is: "You have nothing to fear anyway, there's so much carbon on your bikes, you're damn near immune to lightning." LOL

Bye folks - don't forget to hide under those trees, and ride those carbon bikes should you get caught in a thunderstorm!!

I don't just think they are ... I KNOW they are! Do a few years worth of computer desktop support and it all becomes clear. Most poeple in fact have no logic to them whatsoever. It amazes me we've survived as a species.

That's what my kid tells me. He is a supervisor in Fortune 500 support for good old Microsoft.

That's what my kid tells me. He is a supervisor in Fortune 500 support for good old Microsoft.

Yeah, it's murder. The world became technically sophisicated overnight and people are still trying to live by the seat of their pants. That may have worked in an agrarian society but it ain't gonna cut it by today's standards.

Riding in a lightning storm is exactly like playing Russian roulette. If there's lightning around you won't see me out there on my bike. If your brain tells you it's ok then hey, I support natural selection. It's for the good of the species and all that.

There was a saying that the older generations used to say about people staying out in the rain. They said they, "don't have enough brains to come in out of the rain." I certainly am short on brains but have always believed in heeding the advice of those who have been on the planet longer. More experience generally yields better advice.

When i wake up in the morning and hear raindrops hitting the roof, i reach over and disable the alarm clock. I know that mother nature has just given me a recovery day. BAck to sleep i go.

Riding in a lightning storm is exactly like playing Russian roulette. If there's lightning around you won't see me out there on my bike. If your brain tells you it's ok then hey, I support natural selection. It's for the good of the species and all that.

I thought that fulfilling natural selection was the whole point of biking

I don't like rain, but I'll put up with a little bit. Have a rain shell, and it only seems to rain when I forget to bring it.

When I've planned to join a major group ride, I'll ride rain or shine. Did that last two Bike New Yorks in a cold drizzle, and the last Bike DC was a cold soaker.